Flee, Fly, Floo
by Teller
Summary: PG for language (mild). On to the summary... What would have happened if Lily had been able to escape Voldemort with baby Harry in her arms? Harry would have no scar, less fame, and a completely different life. How different? You're about to find out....
1. Floo Powder

AUTHOR'S NOTE: First off, thank you to Kimi Komayaka Onnarashii for alerting me to the fact that the font in my previous posting was painfully tiny. I have also posted the next chapter, so keep breathing! (jk, like anything in my story would compell you to stop breathing in the first place) On to the standard disclaimer.. ::rolls up sleeves:: 

Although I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters/places/events related to Harry Potter (all of that belongs, unfortunately for we fanfiction authors, to the talented J.K. Rowling) I do own this storyline and plot. Thank you for not stealing! Feel free to post it on any of you reader's respective websites, if you ask me first!!!! Got that? Good! ^__~ _Thank you so much for taking the time to read this nonsense! So read it, review it, and most importantly, (other than review it) enjoy it! Muchas gracias,

~Teller

__

What would have happened if Lily had been able to escape Voldemort with the baby Harry in her arms? Harry would have no scar, less fame, and a completely different life. How different? You're about to find out . . .

***

It was the usual stunning, breath taking, brilliant sunset that washed Godric's Hollow over with golden light every evening Lily and James Potter had known there. Gold, red, orange, and pink painted the sky a glowing picture of autumn that complimented the red, orange, and brown leaves on the trees nicely. She sighed, and leaned against her husband's chest. The maple leaves almost matched her hair in their reddish glory. Her peaceful reverie and appreciation of nature was abruptly disrupted with a ear shattering - 

__

"Good bye, Sirirus! Thank you for coming!" Bellow from her husband out the door to the retreating back of his friend, who turned and waved in response. He mounted his gargantuan motorcycle, started it up with a tap of his birch wood wand, and roared off - but not along the road, as 'normal,' non-magic (or 'Muggle') motorcycles would - no, Sirius rode straight up into the sky. Lily sighed and tightened her grip around James' waist as she watched him fly away. James looked down at his wife, who was still staring up into the sky worriedly. He smiled, and brushed away her curly ruby hair that looked almost golden in the lights of the setting sun. She turned her emerald gaze to her husband, and smiled slightly. James smiled in return, and kissed her gently.

"Happy Halloween, my love," he murmured when they seperated. She smiled and rested her head against his chest. 

"And to you, my darling." They turned from the door and setting sun to their quaint house and young son, shutting out the night that was slowly closing in. 

Later that night, Lily sat on the couch, bottle-feeding her son Harry. His night- black hair fell into his green eyes that were mirror images of her own. She brushed a strand of his wayward hair off his pale forehead, smiling, but as her fingers smoothed an area between and slightly above his eyes, her stomach was gripped with a sudden and violent wave of nausea. Her stomach convulsed slightly, and Harry broke away and started crying. Lily inhaled sharply, put Harry down in the crib, and rushed to the bathroom. She was suddenly very violently ill, and when she sat back, she became aware of James' hand rubbing her back gently. 

"Lily, what's wrong?" He asked, frowning in concern. Lily shook her head, and broke into sudden sobs, the taste of bile still strong and bitter in her throat. She collapsed on James, unable to calm herself.

"James, I don't know!" She cried, near hysterics. "Something's wrong, something ... I don't know, I just can feel it! I don't ... understand, James!" 

"Erm . . . now, now, Lily, calm yourself, everything is going to be just fine . . . I promise." Lily shook her head, clearly as terrified as James was, but for a completely different reason. She gasped, taking deep breaths, and the nausea was suddenly gone as if it had never been. She took another huge breath of air, and it still did not return. She shook her head. 

"I . . . I'm all right now, James. I'm fine." She stood, and James followed suit, still frowning at her in concern. She pressed a hand to her temple, and James saw that it was still shaking slightly. Neither of them had ever been huge Divination fans, but this was beyond weird....

"I'm going to make a pot of tea, all right James?" She asked, strangely bright. James nodded, still wide-eyed, clearly thinking that saying 'no' would send his wife into convulsions again. She hurried to the kitchen, and put a pot on the boiler. James picked up Harry, and played a rather slow version of patty-cake with him to pass the time. Without warning, the hairs on the back of his neck prickled, and he whipped his head around over his shoulder. Nothing was there. James raised a hand to the back of his neck and rubbed it, shaking his head slightly. Lily had raised his nerves, and it was Halloween, after all . . . he brought his hand back down, and the anxiety attacked again like a rabid hyena. James jumped up, hand clasped on the back of his neck in a vise-like grip, looking around wildly. Harry started crying, startled by his father's sudden and aggressive movements. Lily came in, carrying two cups of steaming tea.

"What's wrong, James?" She asked worriedly. No trace of the former fear still glinted in her verdant eyes, and James was not eager to re-awake that. 

"Nothing, Lily, I startled Harry." She accepted that, and handed James his tea. She sat down in a nearby arm-chair and closed her eyes, stirring her tea slowly. James sat across from her, and shivered slightly. 

"Lily, dear, I'm a touch cold. Would you mind if I started the fire?" Lily shook her head, and took a long sip of her tea. James pointed his wand at the fireplace, which blazed into life and cast strangely ominous and unfamiliar shadows on the walls of the small room. He settled back, trying to get comfortable, trying to ignore the whisper-light fingers of fear that were brushing up and down his spine - and the hairs on the back of his neck prickled yet again. He shifted in his seat, looking for an excuse to get up.

"Erm . . . excuse me a moment, Lily. I'm going to get a sweater." Lily nodded again, and finished her tea. As James left the room, she bent and picked up Harry, singing him a nursery rhyme she had learned from her mother. 

"A flea and a fly were stuck in a floo,

'Let us flee,' said the fly,

'Let us fly,' said the flea,

And out of the floo they flew." Harry giggled, but then stiffened in her arms, and began crying. There was a loud crash, and a foundation-shaking bang echoed around them, making books and pictures of grinning Siriuses and Remuses drop to the floor. A high-pitched laugh followed the crash, and James' face appeared in the door, pale with fear. 

"Lily, take Harry and go! It's him!" Lily gasped, and turned away from James, then turned back to him.

"James, no -" James pushed her to the fireplace.

"Lily, go! I'll hold him off!" Lily began to cry, tears streaming down her face.

"James, I love you -" she began, but James cut her off with a fierce kiss that made her cry harder, because she knew it would be the last one she would ever share with him. He pulled away.

"I love you too, Lily," he said, and turned from her. Lily could hardly see from the tears streaming down her face, but turned to the fireplace and grabbed a small jar. Her hands were shaking too hard for her to open it, so she threw it into the fire and it exploded into green flames twice her height. She fell into it, sobbing, "Pirate's Cove," and sheilding the crying Harry in her arms from the falling ash. As the swirling feeling of vertigo overwhelmed her, she thought: 'Let us flee,' said the fly, 'Let us fly,' said the flea,

"And out of the floo they flew," she sobbed as she collapsed onto the floor of Sirius Black's living room.

***

More's coming! Promise! Thanks for reading! Now, review!! (please?)


	2. Flight. Ghostly Healing

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay everyone here's the next chapter! Yay, I guess! :) Enjoy, all standard disclaimers apply (I'm not in the note-y mood now) But thanks for checking this out! Read it, review it, and most importantly, enjoy it! 

~Teller

Sirius Black pulled into his garage and turned off his magical motorcycle with a flick of his wand. He got off the motorcycle and, whistling, hung his leather jacket up on a hook just inside the door. He conjured himself a cup of tea, and sat down to read the Daily Prophet.

A sentence into the first article he became bored. 

"Perhaps I could go visit Peter," he mused, stroking his black beard with the air of a great intellect. He stood to reclaim his jacket and helmet, but a sudden movement out of the corner of his eye made him stop and turn.

The flames in his fireplace had turned a bright green, and were at least his height. A tall, slender figure appeared in it, and someone with hair so red for an instant Sirius thought it was on fire fell out of the fireplace, and collapsed on the ground, sobbing incoherently.

"Lily!" Sirius gasped, and rushed to her. He rolled her over, and saw that she clutched a screaming Harry in her arms. He took Harry from her and shook her shoulder. "Lily!" He repeated. No response. Sirius paled, and hugged Harry to him tightly. He waved his wand and conjured a large crib for Harry, then lifted Lily to the green couch. He hurried to get a wet compress for her forehead, and sponged it gently, cradling her head in his lap. After a few moments, Lily's eyelids fluttered, and she opened her eyes, meeting Sirius's own brown ones.

"James?" She asked, reaching a hand up to Sirius's face. She blinked again, and her eyes focused on Sirius. Suddenly she began to cry, huge tears trickling out of her eyes. She sat up and put her head in her hands, and rocked back and forth, sobbing James' name out in in great gasps. Sirius was terrified. He put a hand out and rubbed Lily's back gently, making shushing noises like his mother used to. Lily looked up suddenly and looked around wildly.

"Harry! Where's Harry?" She demanded, fear prominent in her eyes. Sirius gestured to the crib, where the child had fallen asleep.

"He's in the crib," he said quietly. Lily stood and rushed to her son. Upon seeing that he was safe and unharmed, she sighed in relief and touched a hand to his forehead. It seemed he was missing something . . . besides a father . . . tears began seeping out of her eyes again.

"Lily . . . what's wrong? What happened?" Sirius asked, enveloping her in a tight hug. Lily took a huge, shuddering gasp.

"It was - him - Voldemort - he came - James said he'd hold him off, so I - I took Harry and we - we came here." She said, still crying. Sirius paled, and all the laughter left his eyes. 

"Peter," he growled. Lily burst into sobs again, and Sirius' anger swelled. "That traitorous rat-bastard! He -" Sirius' anger prevented him even from speaking coherently, and a stream of curses and violent oaths streamed from his lips in a language Lily didn't even want to comprehend. 

"I'll kill him!" Sirius shouted, taking his wand and beginning to storm out the door.

"Sirius - no! Please, stay here with Harry and I! Please -" she said, holding her hands out. "We need you here with us more than Peter needs what's coming to him." Sirius glared at the door, but forced himself to relax his grip on his wand.

"Very well," he said tightly. "I'll stay here with you two." 

"thank you Sirius, thank you!" Lily said, cradeling Harry in her arms again. He was awake, and seemed unperturbed by the evening's previous events. He played with his mother's auburn hair, twisting it in his tiny, chubby hands. "What should we do?" She asked helplessly. Sirius frowned.

"He'll be able to find you here. We should . . . go to Dumbledore." Lily nodded, and felt tears well up in her eyes again.

_I will not cry,_ she thought firmly. _For the sake of Harry, I will not cry._

An hour later, Sirius and a man named Albus Dumbledore, the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, sat in a large, circular office.

"Thank you for taking them in, Albus," Sirius said solemnly. Dumbledore nodded, his face no less solemn. 

"Voldemort and Peter Pettigrew are still on the loose. The Ministry's Hit-Wizards are closing in on Peter, but we have no idea where Voldemort may be." Sirius nodded, and anger flooded his face.

"We were betrayed," he hissed through his teeth. Dumbledore's aged face grew even more solemn. Sirius had told him all about the change James had made made from making him the Secret-Keeper of the Fidelius Charm to Peter, who turned out to be a henchman of Voldemort's.

"Yes, betrayed. But we cannot change the past! We all loose people we love. Keep your wits about you, Sirius, they will be needed. Remus cannot come now, the timing makes it difficult for him -" he glanced out the window at the full moon and shook his head. "Lily and Harry will depend on you, Sirius." Sirius nodded, and stood to leave the room and watch over Lily, who was fast asleep in Dumbledore's bedroom with Harry close to her side. Dumbledore sighed, and looked out the window again at the full moon. 

The next day, the following article appeared in the _Daily Prophet_:

****

MURDERER PETTIGREW CAPTURED TODAY

This morning at two thirty, trained Ministry Hit Wizards closed in on the runaway Peter Pettigrew, who has been found guilty of conspiracy, treason, and the assisted murder of James Potter. The large, balding man was cornered in a Muggle Alley in Edinburgh. He was disarmed and successfully taken prisoner with the all time low record of only three Muggles noticing and requiring Memory Charms. He was taken into custody at the Ministry Of Magic Headquarters, but before he could be questioned was killed. It was assumed that the Dark Lord was involved with Pettigrew's death as the Dark Mark was found smoking on his left arm shortly after his decease. Furthur investigations will be made by both Aurors and the Experimental Charms Committee. 

Lily set the paper down, her hands shaking. She still had not quite gotten over the previous night's events. She fingered her wedding ring, and felt the tears welling up in her eyes again. She took a deep breath and looked up at the enchanted Great Hall ceiling. The blue sky cheered her somewhat.

_I can get over this,_ she thought. _I lost my grandparents, my mother, my father, and my brother, and I got over it. I can get over James. It will take time and healing, but I can do it. All I need is Harry, Sirius, and Remus. We'll be fine. _Harry chortled from his place on the floor, and Lily bent to pick him up. He beamed at her, and reached for her coffee.

"Harry, don't --" But it was too late, the tea cup had been upended upon the newspaper. People in the black-and-white wizarding pictures opened their mouths in silent screams and fled for the safety of the picture borders. Lily watched them with amusement and began to laugh. Harry looked at her with wide green eyes, slightly confused, and promptly went cross-eyed. Lily laughed even harder; she didn't know why but for some reason this was so funny to her, and soon she was doubled over with peals of hysterical laughter, tears rolling down her face. Harry, seeing the tears, patted his mother's head for comfort. Unfortunately, this only made her laugh harder. She pulled air through her lungs in great, gasping breaths, and the air tore at her throat with saw-edged blades. She began to cough, and reached for her coffee cup -- only to realize its contents had been spilled across the paper. She began to laugh again.

"Good lord, she's gone insane!" A voice from the double doors of the Great Hall said. Lily looked up and saw Sirius, smiling, heading over to her. He saw the spilled coffee and the concerned Harry, and shook his head. He patted Lily's ruby hair. 

"Now, now, Lily, it's all right." Suddenly Lily stopped laughing, and looked up at Sirius with wide green eyes. Sirius, finding himself confronted with two identical emerald stares, took a slight step back. Lily took another huge breath of air and smiled shakily at Sirius. 

"You okay?" He asked. Lily nodded, smiling.   
"Surprisingly, Sirius, I think I am . . ."

A pearly white figure peered in through the window, and saw Lily, Sirius, and baby Harry sitting at the breakfast table, all smiling and laughing with the ease of healing. The figure grinned, and brushed a few ghostly strands of dark hair out of foggy eyes. He turned, put his transparent hands in invisible pockets, and continued patrolling the Hogwarts lawn, whistling silently.


	3. Resumes and Rivalries

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is short and sweet, and somewhat uneventful. Actually, very uneventful, but vital to the plot so here it is. Oh, and before I forget, I need a beta reader -- and not just for my Harry Potter fics. Any takers out there? Please review! thanks!   
~Teller

DISCLAIMER: All standard disclaimers apply

"Albus, we need somewhere to stay." Lily said, bouncing Harry on her right hip. Dumbledore nodded, not looking up from his pacing. "The Fidelius Charm didn't work, and I'm not willing to risk it again." Dumbledore stopped and stared. 

"Not -- not willing?" He asked, sounding surprised. Lily shook her head. 

"The only people that would be choices at all are you, Sirius, and Remus, and everyone knows they would be. One Imperius Curse, and it's all over -- I doubt we'll have the luck to survive _two_ of the Dark Lord's attacks." 

"So --" 

"So, here's my application," Lily said, handing Dumbledore a thick parchment envelope. "I'm applying for the job of teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts next year, seeing as Proffessor Redding is retiring this year. It's tough competition, with young Mr. Quirrell applying for it as well, but I'll give it a chance." Dumbledore took the envelope, and met her determined verdant eyes with his own surprised azul ones. He smiled. 

"Yes, the competition for this job is very fierce, but I'll look into your application." 

"Thank you, Professor," she said, grinning. "I can't tell you how much I appreciate it. My first choice would have been Charms, but as Professor Flitwick has held that position for many years . . ." Dumbledore nodded. 

"I think the Defense Against the Dark Arts position would suit you just fine," he said, his smile widening.

"Thank you again, Professor," she said, returning his smile.

"You are most welcome, Lily," he said, putting the resume on his desk and sitting down. "Now, if you do not mind, I have some applications to review . . ." Lily nodded.

"Not at all," she grinned, and left his office, Harry giggling in her arms.

A pearly gray figure watched her walk down the hallway, his faintly green eyes sparkling in a ghostly smile behind clouded glasses.

Lily, Sirius, and Harry sat on the bank of the Hogwarts Lake, tossing bits of bread in for the giant squid. Whenever a giant tentacle would sweep up above the surface Harry would gasp, and tears of fright would form in his green eyes. Then the appendage would splash into the water and curl around the tiny piece of bread, and he would laugh and clap his hands, making Lily and Sirius dissolve into hysterics every time. When Harry saw them laughing, he would turn to look at them and go cross - eyed. When this happened for the fifth time, Sirius stopped laughing and looked carefully at Harry. 

"Lily, look at Harry," he said, frowning slightly. Lily stopped laughing.

"What?" 

"See how he goes cross - eyed?"

"Yes . . . isn't that normal for children?" Sirius shook his head.

"No, Lily, it isn't . . .good thing you weren't a medi-witch." he paused. "Lily, I think this means Harry needs glasses." Lily frowned.

"Are you sure?" Sirius nodded. 

"Let's take him up to Madam Pomfey just to see." Lily nodded, and they stood, brushing grass clippings off their robes as they walked up the sloping lawn. They passed several of the elder students who had the blessing of a free period, and they nodded to each other in acknowledgement. 

"So did Dumbledore tell you yet?" Lily asked him. Sirius shook his head, and took Harry from her arms, tossing him a few feet in the air and catching him before he fell. Harry laughed out loud, and Lily shook her head.

"Tell me what?" Sirius asked. 

"I applied for the job as Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts." Sirius raised his eyebrows, a surprised look on his face.

"You did?" He asked. Lily nodded, a huge smile on her face. 

"I did. I don't know if I'll get it, because of that Mr. Quirrell applying, but I think I have a chance." Sirius seemed to be having problems coaxing his eyebrows to come down from his hairline. "What?" Lily asked.

"I just never pictured you as a teacher, Lil'," Sirius laughed. 

"Oh? And why not?" She asked, stopping and putting her hands akimbo, her eyes laughing. Sirius' eyes widened.

"I don't know!" He exclaimed. Lily laughed. 

"Yes you do! Nevermind, I don't want to hear it. Now come on, lets go up to Madam Pomfrey." Sirius nodded, and they continued up to the Sick Wing. 

"No doubt about it, he'll be needing glasses," Madam Pomfrey said in a business-like matter. "I would give him the Better-Vision Charm, but he's far too young. His eyes haven't finished growing yet. So . . ." she rumaged through a drawer in her desk, and finally pulled a pair of over-large, square-lensed glasses out. Sirius choked back a laugh, and Lily glared at him reprovingly. Madam Pomfrey added her glare to the moment.

"Don't be ridiculous, Mr. Black, of course I'm not going to give him these glasses," she said, walking back over to Harry. She put the glasses on him and tapped them with her cherrywood wand. They shrunk, then grew a bit, then shrunk again, faded into black and rounded out into circular lenses. Harry blinked, but he didn't go cross eyed. Lily smiled. 

"Is that all, then?" 

"Yes, that'll be it. If he breaks them, just give them a tap with your wand and they'll fix themselves right away. I've placed a charm on them so he won't loose them, so you needn't worry about that. If he still goes cross-eyed, let me know, and I'll give him a stronger pair." Lily nodded, and Sirius picked Harry up.

"Thank you so much, Madam Pomfrey, you're a miracle worker."

"Not at all, Lily dear, and why don't you call me Poppy? As you might be working here next year," Madam Pomfrey smiled and winked at her. Lily frowned slightly.

"How did you know?" She asked. Madam Pomfrey only smiled wider.

"Word gets around quite quickly here, my dear. Now, go along outside, you two, its far too nice of a day for you to be cooped up inside." Sirius and Lily laughed and obliged, leaving the hallway. They almost ran into someone when they came out of the door.

"Oh, excuse me --" Lily began, then stopped when she saw who it was. Sirius stiffened. 

"What are you doing here?" He asked gruffly. Severus Snape, the rival of Sirius, James, and Remus Lupin while at school at Hogwarts, sneered derisively in answer to the question. 

"I suppose I might ask you the same thing, Black. Or have you been held back all these years?" Lily put a restraining hand on Sirius' wand arm. 

"No, Sirius and I are here on sanctuary," she said lightly. "After the Dark Lord's attack on my home, this is the only place that we are safe." Severus' eyes widened, and a slightly strangled noise of surprise escaped his throat, which he hurriedly covered with a cough. Lily noticed he gripped his left arm tightly, right below the elbow.

"Just as I suspected would happen," he scoffed brusquely. "Potter's over-large head attracted attention, just as I told him it would, and for once, it was not the positive, ooh-ahh attention his ego implied he was used to . . ." he said, continuing walking down the hallway. Lily paled and shook her head, and Sirius purpled in rage. 

"I can see he hasn't changed one jot," Lily said sadly. "What was he doing here?" 

Madam Pomfrey had come out the door behind us, and shook her head at Severus Snape's retreating back. "Applying for the position of Potions Master, didn't you know? Merlin help us if he gets the job." Sirius groaned and Lily frowned. 

"Dumbledore wouldn't hire _him_, would he?" She asked pensively. Madam Pomfrey sighed and shook her head.

"I'm quite sure I don't know, m'dear, quite sure I don't know." Sirius glared as Snape finally rounded the corner and went out of sight, heading for the Headmaster's office.

Guess what you do now? reviewreviewreviewreviewreview!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ~Teller


	4. To Insanity and Back Again

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is much longer than the last chapter, at least twice as long if not three. Much more happens in it, though, and a great deal of it is humorous. I still need a beta reader!! 

Read it, review it, and enjoy it. All standard disclaimers apply. Thanks for taking the time to read this!!  
~Teller

Christmas had arrived at Hogwarts. Snow covered the ground outside the castle, and stray misletoe leaves hugged the ceiling within. Giggles became louder and occured more often, and certain voices became unusually deep and manly -- no doubt about it, the SnowBall was approaching. It was different from the Yule Ball in that it was only for 4th years and up, and that the Yule Ball was solely a Tri-Wizard Tournament occasion. Lily and Harry were sleeping in a room in Gryffindor Tower, just a little bit down from Sirius' room. The morning before Christmas Holidays began and the day of the SnowBall, a tawny owl tapped on Lily's window just as the sun began to light the horizon. Lily, grumbling and blinking sleep out of her eyes, slid the window open, shivering as a wintry breeze swept through the room. Harry shuddered at the cold and snuggled closer to his teddy bear. Lily let the owl in and shut the window quickly, flipping it two Knuts for the delivery of the _Daily Prophet_. But the owl shook its head and handed her, instead, a thick envelope. Lily squinted closer and realized it wasn't the usual _Prophet_ delivery owl. She fumbled around a purple wax seal and several sheets of paper slid out. 

_Dear Ms. Potter,_ it read, 

I am happy to inform you that you have been accepted for the job of Professor for Defense Against the Dark Arts at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

She didn't get any farther than that. The paper drifted to the ground on the small current of air Lily's feet kicked up as she sprinted out the door. 

"Sirius!" She shouted, trying to kick his door in. "Sirius! Open this god-damned door!" 

"Lily?" A surprised, sleepy looking Sirius opened the door cautiously. Lily dove for him, hugging him tightly around the neck. "I made it!" She squealed. "ImadeitImadeitImadeit!!!!" Sirius tried feebly to pull himself away from her, but Lily had his head in a death grip. 

"_Lily_," He croaked out. She stopped.   
"What? Oh -- sorry," she said, releasing him. He hit the floor with a muted thump, but before he could properly catch his breath, Lily had him again and they - well, mostly she - were waltzing around the room, Lily singing at the top of her lungs. 

"Lily!" He repeated. Lily paused, laughing hysterically. 

"What?" She asked, then pouted. "Oh, look at you! You made me loose my count. Now where was I?" As she tried to retrace her steps, Sirius broke away and threw his hands up in the air. 

"You made _what_?" he demanded. Lily looked surprised. 

"Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts, of course." Sirius stared at her. Lily blinked. A few Gryffindors peered around the door, giggling. 

"You made it!" He shouted. "YOUMADEITYOUMADEITYOUMADEIT!!!" Sirius whooped, throwing himself at Lily. They - well, mostly he - began to salsa around the room. "I can't believe you made it! You beat out Quirrell for the job! Way to go, Lil'!!" Lily, still surprised by his initial reaction, finally registered what he was saying. Then she laughed, and began to salsa as well. 

"I made it!" She cried.

"You made it!" Sirius responded. There was a loud cough from the door. They turned, and saw a thin-lipped Professor McGonagall standing just inside the door in her nightgown and bath robe, hands akimbo. Lily and Sirius grinned sheepishly. 

"What is going on here?" She asked in clipped tones. Lily and Sirius stepped away from each other, and dusted themselves off. Sirius clasped his hands behind his back and rocked on his heels, looking out the window with a would-be innocent expression on his face. Lily tried vainly to get her hair out of her face. Both of them felt like they were back in high school -- which, to a point, they were. "Well?" She prompted. 

"Er, nothing, Professor McGonagall," Lily said, slipping past her into the hallway. "We were just - erm - celebrating." 

"Celebrating what, may I ask? You've woken the entire Gryffindor Tower, if not the whole school!" 

"I'm sorry, Professor, we just -" Lily stopped midsentence. "Wait a second," she said, as if she had just realized something. "You're not my Professor anymore!" She shook a finger at her. "Don't mess with me, Pr - _Minerva_," she struggled with the name. "Because I am now one of your colleagues! I will be the Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts next year!" Minerva raised her eyebrows. Several of the Gryffindors in the hall cheered; they had become close with Lily ever since she moved in with them. 

"Congratulations, Miss - _Professor_ - Potter," she corrected herself. "I look forward to teaching with you next year. Until then, do try to keep under control." Lily laughed, then straightened her face. 

"Yes, of course, Pr - Minerva," she said in what she hoped would be her Professor-voice. "Do excuse me." 

"Of course," she said loftily. "Good day, Mi -- Profess -- Lily," she finally got out, continuing down the hall. When she turned the corner to her bedroom, she let the smile she had been trying vainly to hide escape. Lily teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts? She wouldn't miss the next year for anything in the world. 

After it was made common knowledge that Lily had become the next Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts, there was a surprising increase in the number of students who would be staying over the holidays. After Sirius had found out that Lily had become the next Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts, he had set out to find the most troublesome Gryffindor seventh-years he could find. After forty-five minutes of scrounging, he had six grinning students lined up in his room - four boys, two girls. 

"Right, troops," he barked. "Today is your last day of school - er, essentially. You've already completed all the required courses - and passed, I hoped," he glowered for effect, and after making sure they were all paying attention, snapped back to his military-commando style of speaking. "And do you want to go to graduation as unremembered goody-two-shoes? _NO_," he roared, "You want to emerge from Hogwarts battle-torn and stained with the sweat of victory! Did we give up when Professor McGonagall said 'no'? When Filch made us clean the bathrooms - without magic? When Peeves ratted us out? When The Fat Lady wouldn't give us the password? No! When the going gets tough -" he paused and paced for three or four steps. "_THE TOUGH GET GOING!" _He thundered. "Who's with me?" The Gryffindors cheered lustily.

"Now, here's the battle plan . . ." 

At breakfast, Lily noticed that Sirius and several of the Gryffindor seventh-years were late. She looked at Dumbledore and raised her eyebrows, who shook his head wearily in response. She giggled. _Hogwarts is in for a surprise_, she thought as she spooned mashed peas into Harry's mouth. _I hope Sirius hasn't lost his touch_. She grimaced as Harry spat the rejected peas into her lap, and hoped that was a good omen. 

Halfway through breakfast, when some of the students had begun to stand up and drift to the hallway, the large double doors slammed shut in their faces. Murmurs of surprise and some of fear arose from the students. Lily contained her laughter. _Here we go,_ she thought. A loud cackling came from the center of the Great Hall, and the clouds in the enchanted school began to swirl and become dark and menacing. There were several loud explosions, and four or five ghosts materialized. One was Peeves, who was clearly in his element. Laughing insanely, he cupped his hands and shouted at the ceiling as loud as possible, 

"LET 'ER RIP!" As if on cue, an obscene amount of snow dumped through the enchanted ceiling. A shrill laughter, different from that of Peeve's or the students, also sounded, and the doors burst open. A flood of Cornish Pixies flew in, giggling in their strident voices. Sirius, Remus Lupin, and the seventh years came charging in behind them on broomsticks, roaring battle cries at the top of their lungs. Sirius scooped up a hand-full of snow as he flew and quickly packed it into a snow ball, then bewitched it with his wand. After hurling it at a confused looking first year, he hightailed it in the opposite direction. The explosion sounded, leaving the first year in the center of a veritable crater of snow with slightly singed eyebrows. Anyone near him had been buried in the snow that had been kicked up from the explosion, and they erupted from the snowbanks roaring with laughter. Smiling devilishly, Sirius flew a loop-the-loop and crept up on Lily, a platter of scrambled eggs in his hand. He waited till she had handed Harry to Professor McGonagall, who sat on her right, and then dumped the whole thing on her head, roaring another battle cry. Lily, gasping for breath and spitting scrambled eggs and laughter out of her mouth, picked up a tureen of strawberry jelly, and hurled it at Sirius. He ducked, and the jelly hit Professor Dumbledore instead. Lily turned white and Sirius went red from laughing. 

Remus flew up behind Sirius and dumped an arm-load of snow on him, knocking him from his broom. Lily ducked the snowball Dumbledore, laughing uproariously, had hurled at her in response to the jelly, and grabbed Sirius' broom. She mounted it, grabbed a pitcher of orange juice, and hovered above Sirius, who was rolling about in the snow, laughing. She upended the pitcher and made sure the orange juice landed square on his chest. Professor McGonagall looked scandalized, but Remus fixed that by hitting her right between the eyes with a snow ball. She began to look furious, but then a slow smile formed on her face and she threw the syrup pitcher at Remus, charming it so that it turned over right above his head. Remus looked shocked, an expression that dissolved Professor McGonagall into hysterics. Sirius glanced at the students, and saw that it had become a complete free-for-all.

"To insanity and back again," he heard Professor Redding mutter to no one in particular. Sirius grinned to himself as he leapt at Lily and shoved her off his broom. Success! 

Dumbledore decided to cancel classes that day, and everyone spent the rest of the morning strolling around the castle corridors causing mischief or having snowball fights outside on the grounds. Sirius, Remus, the seventh graders, and Lily had been detailed to cleaning up the Great Hall, even though Lily had nothing to do with the entire incident, aside from being the inspiration of it, but Professor McGonagall had decided that was enough reason anyway. When they had finished, Sirius clapped the seventh graders on the back and said:

"Excellent job, the Maurauders themselves couldn't have done it better," he said, winking at Lily, who had given Harry to a group of Ravenclaw fifth year girls. "I say, to the Three Broomsticks for a butterbeer treat!" They blinked at him.

"But . . . we can't get to Hogsmeade," they said blankly. Sirius, Remus, and Lily looked scandalized.

"You mean you haven't found the passageways out of the school yet?" They chorused. Still blank-faced, the seventh years shook their heads slowly.

"And you're seventh years! For shame, for shame," Sirius said, shaking his head.

"We found the way to Hogsmeade in our fifth year," Remus boasted. "And you lot call yourselves mischief makers!" Lily grinned at them.

"Not to worry, chaps, that's what we're here for!" She cried, putting her arms around the two girls, Miranda and Melody. "Come on!" She beckoned. "To Hogsmeade!" 

"To Hogsmeade!" The boys echoed in a roar, linking arms with Lily and the rest of the girls. Like a troupe of misled dancers, they cantered down the hall towards the statue of the One-Eyed Hag. 

They emerged in the basement of Honeydukes, creeping out of the passageway as quietly as possible. 

"Go up in groups of two or three," Sirius whispered hoarsely, feeling his way around several large boxes and crates of candy and pointing at the stairs. They all nodded and started up the stairs as silently as possible. Their emergence from the back door went unnoticed in the hustle and bustle of pre-holiday shoppers. Giggling quietly, Lily, Miranda, and Melody slipped into the crowd and out the door of Honeydukes to wait for the boys. When they took longer than expected, Melody stamped her foot impatiently.

"Where are they?" She demanded. Lily and Miranda shrugged in unision. Lily opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off by a sudden shriek from inside Honeydukes. Looking at each other with wide eyes and raised eyebrows, they rushed inside, only to be shoved out by a mobbish crowd eager to leave the scene. Like salmon swimming upstream for mating season, the three girls fought their way through the people to see what the commotion was about. When they reached the scene, it was all they could do to keep from doubling over laughing. A sheepish looking Sirius and a red faced Remus stood behind a pile of Chocolate Frogs, Fizzing Whizbees, Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, and several other candies scattered across the floor. At least five overturned barrels the size of trunks were evidence of what had happened, and the elderly lady who owned Honeydukes was on her knees in the midst of it all, looking like she was at a loss of what to do. The husband of the lady strode over to the small crowd importantly, throwing out his chest. 

"What happened here?" He demanded. 

"Well -" Said Sirius.

"You see -" said Remus. 

"They were shoving each other around and fell into the barrels," Darren, a seventh year boy, said from behind a case of Ice Mice. Sirius and Remus glared at him, and he ducked. Miranda stuffed a fist in her mouth to keep herself from laughing out loud. Lily, chuckling to herself, knelt and started picking up Chocolate Frogs. 

"Now now, young lady," the man said, coming over to her. "You don't need to do that. It was none of your affair."

"It doesn't hurt me to help, and it does a lot of good to you and your wife," Lily replied good-naturedly, still sweeping up Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans. Miranda and Melody took the hint and got down on their knees beside her. Sirius and Remus leapt to help, and the seventh year boys followed one by one. In no time the Frogs, Fizzing Whizzbees, and Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans were back in their barrels. The old man scratched his head.

"Well, I can't say how much I thank you, but unfortunately I can't sell damaged goods. What am I going to do with all of this?" Lily and Sirius exchanged excited glances. 

"I'm sure you could sell it at half price or something," Miranda suggested, having caught on to what Lily and Sirius were thinking. The old man waved the idea off. 

"No one wants to buy candy that's been on the floor," he scoffed. "And I don't want to throw it out. Here -" he looked as though an amazing idea had just come to him. "Why don't you three girls take it, as you weren't involved with it at all and yet still helped me clean up. Have a party -- but see to it that these hooligans aren't invited!" He shook a finger at Sirius and the seventh years. 

"No worries there, sir, we don't even know who they are," Melody said importantly. Lily put on wide eyes and a surprised expression. 

"No, we couldn't possibly take all that candy, what will we do with it? There's no way we can carry all of it --"

"Oh, please, Lily?" Miranda begged. Lily sighed. 

"Please??" Melody began pleading as well. "Please, Ms. Potter? We'll be very good!" 

"No, no --" Lily began, but the old man cut her off. 

"Ms. Potter, is it?" He asked, a sad expression coming across his face. Lily looked up, surprised.

"Yes, that's me, Lily Potter," she said, extending a hand. He shook it. 

"I read about your husband in the _Daily Prophet_," he said gruffly. "I used to know him when he was at Hogwarts. Constantly filching the odd Chocolate Frog." His voice caught in his throat, and Lily paled drastically. "But he was a good boy, he was," he said, patting her on the shoulder. "I'm sorry." 

"Well," Lily choked out. "I am too." She was quiet. The old man sniffed, then quickly changed the subject. 

"Gerron with it, take all you can of those five barrels. It's all rotten now, anyway." Miranda and Melody looked at Lily with pleading eyes, who collected herself and forced a resigned sigh out of frozen lungs.

"Oh, very well," she said, dropping her hands to her sides in an expression of helplessness. Miranda and Melody squealed in joy and leapt to the barrels, stuffing bags and boxes full of sweets. Lily couldn't help but laugh as the bags got larger and larger and heavier and heavier.

"Little piggies," she laughed. She tapped the bags with her wand, and they became considerably lighter. "There you go. Now it will be much easier to carry all that nonsense around." 

"Thanks, Lily!" They chorused. When they had taken all they could carry, there was still at least half one barrel full of sweets. The male owner of Honeydukes flicked his eyes in Sirius and Remus' direction, and said grudgingly,

"Oh, go on, take what's left." The boys cheered and threw themselves at the barrel, and the man walked behind the counter, shaking his head as more customers gradually filtered into the store. 

Twenty minutes later, all of them were sitting in the Three Broomsticks, gulping down hot butterbeer and laughing over the morning's events. 

"Rosie!" A very red-faced Sirius bellowed. "Another round of butterbeers over here!" Madam Rosemerta, a young woman who had been several years above the Marauders in Hogwarts, complied, grinning at Sirius. 

"Don't drink too much of this now, Mr. Black," She said, shaking a finger at him. "You never had have much of a tolerance for alchohol."

"Don't be ridiculoush, Roshie!" Sirius laughed, clapping her on the back. "Thish ishn't shtrong enough to get even theshe children shmashed," he gestured to Lily, Remus, and the seventh years. 

"Maybe not, Sirius, but if my memory serves me correctly, it's quite strong enough for you," Lily said, throwing a piece of bread at him. It hit him in the nose, and was so startled he jumped and almost knocked over his butterbeer. 

"Dunno wha' yer talkin' 'bout," he slurred from behind his glass. Remus shook his head, and whispered conspiratorially to the students:

"He has the alchohol tolerance of a house-elf, if that much," Lily nodded her agreement, and the seventh years laughed. Lily checked her watch, and her eyes widened.

"Well, we've missed lunch, and if we want to be back at Hogwarts in time for dinner and the SnowBall, we ought to head back pretty soon." Everyone nodded, and they stood, pulling on cloaks and jackets and leaving a generous tip of Chocolate Frogs for Madam Rosmerta on the table. They strode out of Three Broomsticks, and decided to walk around a bit before going back to Hogwarts so that Sirius' behavior wouldn't rat them out. When the cold air and brisk walking had sobered him up considerably, they turned back to Honeydukes. On their way there, they walked through the village green. Lily, Miranda, and Melody insisted on window shopping, so the boys had mock Muggle duels with sticks from the ground as the girls pressed their faces to the glass. 

"I've got an idea," Lily said suddenly. 

"What?" Miranda asked. 

"Are you two going to the ball tonight?" Lily asked, peering in the window of a store that sold dress robes.

"Well, we weren't planning on it," Melody said.

"Were you asked?" 

"Yeah . . ." they trailed off. Lily was shocked.

"And you turned them down?" She asked.

"Well, we had other things to do," Melody protested. "And besides, who'd want to go with Darren?" She asked, pointing at him. Darren stuck his tongue out at her in response. Lily sighed with exasperation.

"That's it," she said furiously. "You're coming with me. Remus, take the boys back to Hogwarts. We'll be along shortly." Remus nodded and winked at Miranda and Melody, and turned back towards Honeydukes. Lily dragged the two girls into the store. 

"Pick out some robes, and try them on. You're going to the dance tonight."

"What?" Miranda asked, going red in the face. "I don't want to go to the dance!" 

"Have you ever been?" Lily asked, looking through the racks. 

"Well . . . no," she responded. Lily glared at her reprovingly.

"You've been missing out. Some of the most fun occasions I've ever been to have been dances."

"But I can't dance!" Miranda protested.

"Me neither," Lily said, dumping five or six dress robes into her arms. "Now go change." Miranda, looking completely cowed, docily obeyed.

"Now for you," Lily said, sizing Melody up. "Hm . . . this off white would go nicely against your dark skin . . . I've always wanted to have a daughter, this is just like I imagined having one would be! Guess I'll have to settle for this, now." Sadness flickered across her face, but was gone almost as soon as it had come. Melody grinned mischeviously. 

"What about Mr. Black?" Lily stiffened.

"What do you mean?" 

"I mean, what about having kids with Mr. Black? It's obvious he's in love with you." She said, grinning wider. 

"Don't talk absolute rot," Lily said brusquely, shoving some robes into her arms. "Sirius and I are old friends. We don't think about each other that way."

"Okay, Lily, whatever you say . . ." Melody said, scurrying to the dressing room. Lily shook her head and went back to looking for robes.

Twenty minutes later, Miranda and Melody had picked out their robes. Melody, who was black and had amber eyes and long, wavy black hair, had picked an off the shoulders pastel yellow robe that had small sequins glittering at the hem and hugged tightly around her waist. Miranda, who was pale white and had long, straight black hair and blue eyes, had chosen a dark blue robe with a low back and square neckline, embroidered with silver thread. Lily helped them pick out hair jewels and earring to go with their robes, and when they were at the cash register Miranda asked:

"Wait, what about you, Lily?" Lily flushed.

"Well, I'm not going to the ball," She said quickly. Miranda and Melody exchanged outraged glances. 

"What do you mean, 'You're not going'?" Miranda demanded. "If you're making us go, you have to go too!"

"No I don't," Lily said placidly, giving the cashier the robes and jewelry.

"Wait one second," Melody told the cashier. "We aren't through yet." 

They shoved Lily into a dressing room and threw in some robes after her. Lily, chuckling quietly to herself, put them on. Miranda and Melody decided that she looked best in a forest green velvet that complemented her eyes very nicely and had a V-shaped waist, a tie-up back, and a low, curved neckline. It was embroidered with gold thread, and it set off the golden highlights in her brilliant red hair. 

"That's the one," Melody said confidently.

"Are you sure?" Lily asked uncertainly.

"Definitely," Miranda said. "Sirius will love you in it."

"And what do you mean by that?" Lily demanded. Melody and Miranda merely exchanged glances and giggled. "Girls," Lily said. "I know what you're thinking, and I can promise you, it's not like that." 

"It sure seemed like it was this morning when you were dancing around his room with him in your nightgown." Lily sighed an exasperated sigh and payed the cashier. 

"Sirius and I have been friends ever since we started attending Hogwarts. There never was anything romantically between us and there never will be, especially since -" her voice caught, and she paused a moment. "It's not like that," she finished lamely. Melody and Miranda exchanged knowing glances behind her back and they walked out of the store, heading back towards Honeydukes and Hogwarts.

The ball was supposed to start at eight. Of course, everyone wanted to be 'fashionably late,' so no one actually got there till about eight forty-five. It ended at midnight. Lily, Miranda, and Melody, had been primping themselves in Lily's room ever since dinner, which had ended at six thirty, and in spite of themselves, they all were excited to go. 

"Should I wear the gold eyeshadow or the natural tannish stuff?"

"Gold! It's so much prettier!"

"No no no, wear the tan. It makes your eyes look more brown."

"But the gold makes them look more like amber."

"True, true . . . all right, wear the gold. Should I wear my hair like this or like this?" 

"Like that, I like the little twisty at the back, and put one of these little clips here . . . . . and here." 

"No, not there, it'll catch the light better here, see?"

"Oh yeah, that's right. Do it that way, that's much better. Should I wear red or pink lipstick?"

"Red."

"Pink." 

"No . . ."

Sirius, Remus, and the seventh year boys listened at the keyhole, snickering. 

"Who'd have thought?" Will laughed. "Melody, wondering which eye shadow to wear?"

"And Miranda wearing lipstick?" 

"And dress robes?" 

Sirius and Remus laughed.

"It seems Lily has bad effects on all witches," Sirius snickered. "She always did like dressing up." 

"Are you lot going to the ball?" Remus asked the seventh years. 

"Pshaw, no! Raiding the kitchen is lots more fun."

"Have you ever been to the SnowBall?"

"Now that you bring it up, no . . ."

"Boys, boys," Remus said. "You can always raid the kitchen after the ball. Dances are fun, I guarantee it. Sirius? Care to give me a little help here?"

"What? Oh, yes, no doubt about it, balls are loads more fun than raiding the kitchen. Do you all have dress robes? Right then. Go change, I'll meet you in my room." 

When Lily, Miranda, and Melody finally arrived at the ball, Remus, Sirius, and the boys had already been there for about ten minutes. Remus was dancing with Madam Pomfrey, and the boys had all found various girls to dance with, but Sirius sat at a table by himself -- if you didn't count the punch glass to his right. When Lily walked in, he sat straight up and stared. She looked beautiful. The fairy lights played tricks with her hair, making it red, then gold, then red again. He walked up to her and bowed cordially.

"May I have this dance?" He asked, grinning up at her. Lily laughed, and accepted. He whirled her onto the dancing floor, and Melody and Miranda exchanged excited glances. They couldn't talk, however, because several boys had gathered about them and soon they too were swept onto the floor. 

"That's a lovely dress, Lily," Sirius said to Lily as he spun her around. 

"Oh, thank you, Sirius. You look very nice yourself." 

"I know." Lily smacked him lightly on the shoulder, and he laughed. The music slowed, and ended. Sirius put an arm around her shoulders, and Lily rested her head on Sirius' chest in a position that brought back high school memories. 

"Let's go on a walk," he said, gesturing outside. Lily nodded, and they stepped outside. The air had been bewitched so it felt like a summer evening, and they walked through the rose bushes that had been grown just for the occasion. They paused by a sparkling fountain and sat down on a nearby bench to watch the fairies flit across the surface. Sirius kissed Lily's hair lightly, and she sat up and looked at him with wide eyes. 

"Sirius . . ." she started, but he brought his lips down to hers and kissed her. Startled, she pulled away, and stood up. "No, Sirius, I can't," She protested. 

"What? Why?" He asked, his eyes as wide as hers. 

"Jame--I mean, Sirius, I can't, I just can't," she said. Tears began to form in her eyes. 

"Lily -" Lily began to sob, and she ran away into the rose bushes. Sirius sighed and let his head drop. A gentle hand clasped his shoulder and he felt someone sit down next to him. He looked up and saw Remus smiling kindly at him.

"She needs time," he said. "Don't rush her. She's still healing." Sirius nodded. 

"I know," he sighed. "I am too, I guess. I just wish . . ." 

"I understand," Remus said. Sirius nodded again and stood, and they both headed back into the ball. 

Lily sat on a bench, sobbing. She felt a cool hand on her shoulder, and she sat straight up. It felt like she had stepped through an icy waterfall, so cold was the air above her. She shivered, and looked around. No one was nearby. She turned, and saw a ghostly figure standing behind her. She squinted. There was something familiar about it . . .

"James?" She whispered. The ghost smiled and put a finger to his lips, then came and sat down next to her. "Is that you?" The ghost nodded. 

"Can you speak?" He shook his head. 

"James . . ." Lily seemed to be at a loss for words, and silent tears began to spill out of her eyes again. "Why are you here?" She whispered. James pointed at her, then pantomimed a huge smile. Lily frowned. 

"What?" James repeated the gesture. Lily began to cry harder. "You want me to be happy?" She sobbed. James nodded vigorously and beamed at her. When he saw her tears, he reached out a ghostly finger and made the motion of wiping them away. Lily smiled shakily. "It'll take time," she said. James nodded. "But now that I know you're here . . . it won't be so hard." James nodded again, and smiled. He chucked a finger under her chin an a gesture so familiar to her it brought tears to her eyes again, but she bit them back. He brushed his ghostly lips across her own, and a flash of warmth surprised them both. But it faded into nothing, and they pulled away. "Thank you," she whispered. James nodded and faded away. Lily took a deep, shuddering sigh, and wiped her eyes. After a moment, she stood, and headed back to the castle. 

Miranda bit her lip. 

"What was that about?" Melody wondered aloud. Miranda shook her head in response and they both watched Lily walk back to the castle from their hiding place in the rose bushes. 

"I wish we hadn't seen that," she said ruefully. Melody sighed.

"Me too."


	5. Movements and Memories

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay, so, do I get the award for the worst fan fiction author out there?? Who leaves her readers hanging like this for months on end?? I am so cruel. I hope no one has forgotten about this story! Please, read, review, and enjoy!

All standard disclaimers apply. 

~Teller

__

Flee, Fly, Floo

Chapter 5

"Movement and Memories"

It was summer time at Hogwarts, and Lily was settling into her new room as a Professor. The Gryffindors were sorry to see her go, but she was glad that she and Harry would be living somewhere a bit less . . . noisy. She had a suite of rooms all to herself, and found out that so did every Professor. Her rooms (they used to belong to Professor Redding) were connected to her office via a sliding panel behind a painting of Merlin. Behind her office she had a two bedrooms (one for Harry and one for herself), two bathrooms (again, one for Harry) and a small but comfortable living room. She was free to furnish them however she wanted -- which was a good thing, because Professor Redding's garlic and crucifix motif, although typical for a teacher of Defense Against The Dark Arts, was not really her style. So, with the help of Sirius and Remus (and, she was sure, James, although she had not seen him since the SnowBall) she had soon decorated her rooms with warm reds, cool blues, and simple whites. Her office was quickly cluttered with books upon hundreds of books as she planned out the next year's curriculum. Sirius and Remus made it a point to visit at least once a week for dinner and perhaps a trip to Hogsmeade, and she became very close with almost all the other Professors at Hogwarts. Except for one . . .

Snape, or rather, Professor Snape, clearly still felt the animosity towards the Marauders as he had during his high school days. He never said anything about it, but whenever he saw Lily with Sirius or Remus, he would leave the room or turn and walk the opposite direction, leaving an almost palpable cloud of hatred behind him. For some unfathomable reason, Snape seemed to hate Harry the most out of the four of them. Lily couldn't imagine why, and didn't mention it to Sirius -- but she was sure he had noticed it as well. She had taken to sort of shielding Harry with her arms whenever Snape walked by, as if he might lash out and curse Harry out of spite. 

Harry, however, was getting into enough trouble without Snape cursing him. He was walking now, and getting into everything he could reach -- and sometimes more. Once he got hold of Lily's wand while she had been napping, and the results had been disastrous. It had taken three weeks to dispell all the suits of armor. Peeves had a field day - literally.

"Already following in his father's footsteps, hmm?" Dumbledore murmured, winking at Harry as he waved his wand to stop six 12th century suits of armor in the middle of a three-legged race through the Charms classroom. 

Voldemort's attacks had increased in brutality and frequency across the country ever since Lily had slipped through his fingers, and he seemed to be gathering more and more followers. There were Muggle killings almost weekly, and outside of Hogwarts the entire magical community trembled in fear. His reach had begun to spread beyond England and into western Europe and even America. It was whispered in some circles that soon even Hogwarts would not be out of the Dark Lord's grasp.

Severus Snape sat in his office, brooding. His left arm still stung viciously from Voldemort's last calling, and he rubbed it ruefully. Ever since Lily's return to Hogwarts, he had seriously been questioning his allegiance with the dark forces. There was no doubt in his mind that Voldemort would have killed Lily, had he gotten the chance. Most of the Death Eaters had assumed that the target within the Potter household was James, the nosy and hated Auror who had thrown many of their number into Azkaban. But Severus knew that the Dark Lord had actually wanted to kill the child, and had wanted to kill him very badly. 

Severus took a long drink of an amber liquid that glinted red in the firelight and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. The color reminded him of Lily's hair. But then again, everything reminded him of Lily. It had always been that way. The sound of birdsong made him think of her laughter; a summer breeze of the gentle touch of her hands; the vibrant colors of the forest in springtime seemed to reflect her emerald eyes at every turn. She was like a song he had only heard a fragment of a long time ago, but was now unable to get out of his head. He leaned back in his chair and propped up his feet on his desk, thinking back to the first time he had heard that song . . . 

It had been almost thirteen years ago that Severus Snape traveled from Platform 

9¾ for the first time. He remembered even now the lurch of nerves he felt as he stepped onto the busy platform crowded with witches and wizards and their assorted luggage. He saw several students of his own age talking excitedly in small groups here and there. He knew no one going into Hogwarts, and looked around curiously. 

There was a boy his age with light brown hair standing not too far away from him, looking tired and drawn. His skin had an alarming grayish tint to it, and there were deep bags under his eyes. He stood with his shoulders hunched and his head down, as if ashamed of something. Severus assumed he had been sick recently, and gave the boy a wide berth as he passed him, almost running straight into another boy with glasses, brown eyes, and dark hair that looked as if it hadn't been brushed or cut for some time. He was standing with another dark haired boy, taller and broader shouldered, and the two were laughing about something. Severus hoped they hadn't been laughing at him. 

"Sorry," the boy with glasses said, taking a step back to give Severus enough room to pass. Too nervous to speak back to him, Snape nodded stiffly and continued through the crowd, slowly making his way to the train. He caught a few words of the boys behind him as he walked away. 

"A little standoffish, wasn't he?" The first boy was saying.

"A little greasy, too," snickered the second. They laughed, and Severus hunched his shoulders in hurt and anger. This time, he did run into someone headlong, and had the nerve to apologize. 

"Sorry," he grunted, lifting his gaze. It was a good thing he had spoken before he had looked up, because if he had seen the girl he had run into beforehand, he was quite sure he would have been unable to speak for some time. 

She had long red-gold hair and sparkling green eyes framed with dark lashes. She laughed and shook her head, sending cascades of strands of firelight waving down her back. "Not to worry," she said, in a voice Severus was sure came from a throat strung with harp strings. "It's so crowded that everyone is bumping into each other. Do you need a hand with your trunk?" Her smile revealed perfect white teeth set in a beautiful cupid's bow mouth. He managed to nod mutely and tried not to stare as she bent and picked up the other end of the trunk. Together the two of them hefted the big black chest into the scarlet train and then into a compartment just inside the door. When they had set the trunk down, the girl straightened and held out her hand, a perfect appendage with beautifully manicured nails. 

"My name is Lily, by the way," she said. Severus shook her hand and treasured the soft feeling of her palm. 

"Severus," he said, wincing inwardly at the sound of his voice, which came out in a sort of squeak. "Severus Snape."

"Nice to meet you," she said, smiling genuinely, and Snape felt the ability to speak melt out of him again. She looked past him through the window and waved at someone on the platform. "I've got to say goodbye to my family," she said apologetically. "But I'm sure I'll see you at Hogwarts!" She left the compartment, and Snape sat down in a chair near the window, watching her say goodbye to her parents, a small boy with red hair matching Lily's, and a young girl with an unfortunately long neck. He noticed the two boys he had seen earlier watching Lily with expressions similar to his own, and felt the first prickle of jealousy as they approached her bravely. 

The first boy, the one with messy hair and glasses, swept a gallant bow as soon as Lily had turned away from her parents and extended his hand. 

"Good morning, my lady," he said, smiling mischievously at her. "You seemed to have dropped this." He handed her a silk handkerchief embroidered with her initials. Lily looked surprised and patted her pockets. 

"Thank you," she said, bemusedly. "I wonder how I dropped this." She took the handkerchief from him and replaced it in her pocket. 

"The villain is skilled in sleight of hand, milady," the second boy said conspiratorially. "He'll steal the nose right off your face." 

"Ah yes, you mock me, Sirius" said the first. "But who's laughing now?" He held up a purse fat with coins. The eleven-year old Sirius checked his pockets and yelled in outrage, snatching it back from the first. Lily giggled charmingly, and both boys turned their attention back to her. Sirius pushed past James and extended his hand. 

"Please ignore the village idiot," he said, jerking his head in James' direction. "My name is Sirius Black." 

"I'm Lily," she said, shaking his hand and laughing. "Charmed." She turned to James. "And you are . . . ?" 

"James Potter," he said, grinning and shaking her hand. "And the pleasure is all mine."

"Oh, that was original," Sirius scoffed. "Congratulations, you sound exactly like Sean Connery in _Thunderball_."

"At least I don't look like the druidess Cloidna!" James snapped.

"At least I don't walk like Charlie Chaplin!" Sirius shot back. Lily was doubled over in laughter, and again both boys stopped their squabbling to beam at her. 

A whistle blew, announcing the train's departure for Hogwarts. The three young people turned and headed for the nearest entrance, James and Sirius pushing each other behind Lily's back. They followed Lily into a compartment, and she watched them curiously. 

"Did you put your luggage in here as well?" She asked, smiling slightly. Both boys looked a bit taken aback. 

"What? Oh - erm - yes, of course!" James said, smiling broadly and patting a nearby trunk. "What - did you as well? What a coincidence!"

"I did," Lily said. "Actually, that's my trunk you're petting." 

James removed his hand quickly, laughing nervously. "Oh, of course, of course. Silly me. My trunk is over there." He pointed. 

"The one that says 'Remus Lupin'?" Lily asked, grinning now. "Or perhaps you meant the one labeled 'Peter Pettigrew.'" James and Sirius blushed fiercely and Lily laughed. "Not to worry," she said. "There's enough room for five of us. It'll be a bit squashed, but we can do it." She plopped down in a window seat, and there was a short but furious battle between James and Sirius for the seat next to her. James won, his speed beating out Sirius' size. Glaring, Sirius contented himself with sitting across from Lily, who watched in amazement. Luckily, the two boys were saved from further embarrassment when the compartment door slid open and a thin, pale boy wearing somewhat worn robes entered. He looked surprised to see other people sitting there, and Lily said quickly, 

"I hope you don't mind if we join you. Come, sit down." Still looking faintly surprised, the boy nodded and sat down a seat away from Sirius, who laughed. 

"Come on, I won't bite," he said. "Sit with us!" Looking shocked and worried, the boy hesitantly moved over one more seat, so that he was next to Sirius and across from James, who extended his hand. 

"James Potter," He said happily, shaking the poor boy's hand so enthusiastically that his whole, frail body shook. 

"Sirius Black," Sirius said, once James had let go of the boy's hand.

"R - Remus Lupin," he said shakily.

"My name is Lily," Lily said finally. She looked concerned. "Are you ill?" Remus looked frightened.

"N - No," he mumbled, folding his arms around his chest and hugging himself tightly.

"Nervous?" Lily pressed. Remus nodded vaguely.

"Well, relax, old chap, no one is going to feed you to the wolves," Sirius exclaimed, grinning and clapping Remus on the back. At this comment, the boy looked flat-out terrified, but as Sirius and James guffawed heartily, he relaxed a bit and laughed nervously.

"I say, did you catch the Quidditch match last week?" James asked after a somewhat awkward pause in the conversation. Sirius and Remus nodded.

"Ludo Bagman's first game, what an amazing Seeker!" Remus said, relaxing even more.

"The Wimbledon Wasps are definitely going to win the championship this year," Sirius said, nodding. "With Bagman playing like that, how can they loose?" James and Remus nodded in agreement and the discussion became friendly and relaxed. As the train began to move, the compartment door slid open again and a short, fat young boy with thin, mouse-brown hair and thick glasses scuttled into the room, breathing heavily. 

"Sorry," he muttered. "I almost missed the train." Sirius and James laughed, not unkindly. 

"Well, take a seat," James gestured. "You must be Peter Pettigrew." The boy looked surprised and slowly sat down next to James. 

"How did you know?" he asked.

"Elementary, my dear Watson," said James, tapping his forehead knowingly.

"Surprisingly, this twit can read," Sirius said impatiently. "Your name is on that trunk." He pointed, and Peter Pettigrew blinked.

"Oh - oh," he said. "Of course." 

Across the hall, Severus Snape listened to the laughter coming from Lily's compartment jealously. He sulked as the train began to move, and did not look up when the compartment door slid open. 

"Oh," a cold voice drawled from the doorway. "I didn't know this compartment was taken. Narcissa, you don't mind, do you?" Someone sighed. 

"I suppose not," a second voice sniffed. Two people entered the compartment and sat down a few seats away from Snape, who refused to look away from the window. 

"I can see we might as well be alone," the first voice said. "Apparently some of the first years are a bit sulky." 

Snape's pride got the better of him and he flashed an angry glare at the newcomers. They were two older students, a boy and a girl, probably third or fourth years. The boy was tall, thin, blonde and pale, with cold eyes and a mouth that seemed as if it would sneer even while asleep. The girl was slim and blonde as well, and would have been pretty but for the expression in her face that said anything was better than sharing a compartment with Severus. 

"So, he decides to show his face," the boy said contemptibly. "I hope you don't mind if we ask you to move . . . Sharing a compartment with a Mudblood is really too stressful for Narcissa." He patted the girl's bony hand. "And simply too disgusting for me." Severus did not make any sudden movements in anger, nor did he yell or blush. Instead his eyes narrowed and a tiny furrow appeared between his eyebrows.

"My blood is easily cleaner than your scummy face, you fool," he said calmly. "My name is Severus Snape." The boy's attitude changed immediately.

"Snape, is it?" He repeated thoughtfully as he extended his hand. "Malfoy. Lucius Malfoy. And this is Narcissa," he said, waving a hand carelessly in the girl's direction. "I hope you don't mind the Mudblood comment. Can't be too careful these days, even at Hogwarts." Snape said nothing and faced the window again. Lucius didn't seem to care. 

"Going for Slytherin?" He asked in a voice that implied it would be better for Snape's health if he was. "Narcissa and I are both in it. I'm a fourth year and she's third. It's the *only* House to be in, you know . . . Imagine if they had put me in Hufflepuff, I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?" Snape snorted in derision. Lucius seemed to take that as agreement. "Bunch of idiots, Hufflepuffs . . ." he continued, sneering. "Practically all of them are Mudbloods, and the ones that aren't might as well be. Gryffindors are just as bad, Muggle-lovers, all of them. And as for the Ravenclaws . . ." Lucius laughed darkly. "For all their intelligence and quick wits, they haven't a clue what's going on in the real world." The boy continued to talk in a slow drawl, apparently enjoying the sound of his own voice. Snape curled up in his seat and looked out the window, watching the scenery fly by as he thought about Lucius' words. Lily had said goodbye to what looked like a Muggle family at the platform. Could it be that she was not a pureblood? His heart sank. Pureblood or no, she was the most beautiful witch he had ever seen . . .

. . . The most beautiful witch he had ever seen, Sirius thought dreamily, staring openly at Lily, who was laughing at a joke James had made. His gaze drifted over to James, and he recognized the look in James' eyes like a punch to the stomach, although he didn't quite understand why his realization was so painful to him at the time. 

_He's in love with her,_ he thought. _Head over heels. Poor boy. _

Poor Sirius, actually. It would be a long time before he realized that he too was in love with Lily, perhaps more in love with her than James would ever be. 

Sirius rolled over in his bed, trying futilely to keep thoughts of Lily from his mind. It was getting harder and harder to control himself around her, especially since she seemed to grow more beautiful every day. 

_James loved her,_ he told himself fiercely. _It was always James. Lily and James. And James was your best friend. _

When he was fairly sure he understood that, he allowed himself to drift into a gentle sleep, hoping fervently it would not be one peppered with dreams of his best friend's wife. 

Lily tucked Harry's blankets in around his tiny body, careful not to wake him. She smiled at the sleeping baby and kissed his forehead lightly, marveling again at the resemblance between Harry and his father. As she climbed into her own bed, thinking of the first time she had met James, she realized with sudden clarity that thinking of her husband was not as heartbreaking as it had been nine months ago. Still bittersweet, of course, to think of the life they may have had, but she found more joy than pain in the memories of time they spent together. She curled up on her side, pondering this.

_I still love him,_ she thought firmly. _I always have, and I always will. _ She fluffed up her pillow and rolled over, searching for a comfortable position. _So why doesn't it break my heart to think of him as much as it used to? Can it be that I'm forgetting him? _She frowned into the darkness and bit her lip. Starlight gleamed on the rail of Harry's crib, and the corner of her mouth turned upward in a smile. How could she be forgetting James when she lived with a miniature replica of him? Satisfied that she was not being a bad widow, she closed her eyes and slowly fell asleep, thinking of good times she had spent with James . . . At Hogwarts, at work, on vacation . . . At their wedding, on their honeymoon, at the park with Harry . . . She relived every moment she had with him before falling asleep, but the last conscious image in her mind was not of James, but of Sirius as she had first met him, and he was looking at her in a way that James never had. 

Severus Snape jerked suddenly awake. The embers in his fire were burning low, and the brandy glass was empty. Had he fallen asleep? If so, what had woken him? He pulled back the left sleeve of his robe and shuddered. The Dark Mark gleamed evilly on his arm. So, Voldemort was summoning them again. Sighing, he unlocked a magical chest and pulled out his Deatheater's mask and cape, hiding them underneath his robe. It was an inconvenient nuisance not to be able to Apparate in and out of Hogwarts, and it made the Dark Lord most unhappy every time he was late. Scowling darkly, Snape strode out of his office and into the unlit halls, heading for a small side door that opened almost directly into the Forbidden Forest. Making sure no one had seen him, he slipped outside and darted into the Forest. When he was far enough from Hogwarts to Apparate without problems, he pulled on his Deatheater's hood and cape and Disapparated to the Dark Lord's side. 

Remus sat in his library, poring over a new book on werewolves. He paused in his reading to take a sip of tea and stared absently out the window, his thoughts somehow drifting to his first days at Hogwarts. James and Sirius had both fallen for Lily the moment they had met her, that much was clear to Remus, although James had apparently not noticed Sirius' similar affections. Sirius would rather have died than take something James loved away, and so he pined in silence and tried to move on. Remus saw the heartache in Sirius' eyes whenever Lily and James were together, and perhaps understood it better than Sirius did himself. _Who understand love better than the lonely?_ He thought bitterly. 

But Lily was oblivious to Sirius' love for her, perhaps only because she had thought of him as a friend for so long. And it was becoming harder and harder for poor Sirius to accept that, to finally put an end to his lifetime of daydreams. Perhaps he could push the two along just a bit . . . Remus smiled faintly. It had been a long time since he had played matchmaker, and he had forgotten just how much fun it could be. 

The next morning at the breakfast table, Dumbledore noticed small changes in certain of his staff. Severus looked pale and angry, flashing glares at everyone who looked his way and glancing worriedly at Lily Potter and her son from time to time. Professor Potter, on the other hand, was looking happier and more beautiful than ever, laughing with Minerva about some prank the Marauders had pulled during their time at Hogwarts as she bounced Harry on her lap. She seemed to be completely oblivious to the gazes she was receiving from the other end of the table. Dumbledore laced his long fingers together thoughtfully. 

A vague flash of movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention. He turned his head slowly to his left, keeping the ghost in his peripheral vision. He had enough experience with Hogwarts ghosts to know that looking straight at certain of them made them hard to see, but that looking through the corners of your eyes made many things visible that were previously unseen. This ghost seemed to be pacing up and down the staff table, eyeing each individually. He paused when he reached Lily, and Dumbledore couldn't help sucking in his breath suddenly. The ghost had messy hair and thick glasses . . . He reached across the table to pat Harry on the head. The child looked up at the ghost and smiled, as if seeing him was quite a normal thing. He giggled happily, and the ghost smiled back, then suddenly looked up at Dumbledore. He nodded once, respectfully, and vanished. Harry looked disappointed. 

Lily shivered as a draft went through the Great Hall. "Is it getting cold out already?" She asked Minerva, peering up at the enchanted ceiling. "Perhaps I should have worn a sweater." Professor McGonagall looked at Lily, surprised. But Lily had looked up at Dumbledore, who was watching her with a strange expression on his weathered face. 


End file.
